A transient couple deny they sexually abused their son after the child came forward 5 years ago to report the abuse, according to San Bernardino County sheriff’s officials.

Roy Ling, 35, and Sara Wilson, 32, each pleaded not guilty to lewd acts with a child under the age of 14 in Victorville Superior Court Feb. 16, records indicate.

The couple, who had been living in the Mojave riverbed in the High Desert, were arrested Feb. 15 a day after the San Bernardino County District Attorney’s Office granted an arrest warrant for the couple.

The investigation was kicked off in Aug. 2013 when the boy, 5 at the time, told authorities he’d been sexually abused my his parents, Ling and Wilson, according to a sheriff’s statement. At the time, the couple and their child were living on the streets, officials said.

The unidentified boy was taken from the couple and placed under protective care, said Jodi Miller, spokeswoman for the San Bernardino County Sheriff’s Department.

It wasn’t immediately clear how the boy reported the alleged abuse.

Several months later in March 2014, the Specialized Investigations Division, Crime Against Children Detail took over the investigation, but were unable to find Ling and Wilson because they were transients, officials said.

Three years later, the San Bernardino County sheriff’s Hope Team found Ling and Wilson in the riverbed, relaunching the investigation.

At that time, detectives were given information “Ling and Wilson may have committed sexual acts on their dogs,” the Sheriff’s Department said. However, no charges were brought against the couple in relation to that information.

Throughout the five years, the investigation remained open, said Miller.

Although there were several contacts with Ling and possibly Wilson in that time, there wasn’t an arrest warrant in the system until this year that could have flagged law enforcement to the couple, officials said.

Court records indicate Ling had been in and out of court several times for various misdemeanor cases including drug possession charges and violation or city ordinances connected to him being homeless.

Both are expected to be back in court Thursday.

Investigators ask anyone with information on this case to contact Detective Lisa Guerra of the Specialized Investigation Division, Crimes Against Children Detail at 909-387-3517. Callers wishing to remain anonymous can call the We-Tip Hotline at 1-800-78CRIME (27463) or leave information on the We-Tip website at www.wetip.com.

Beatriz E. Valenzuela is an award-winning journalist who’s covered breaking news in Southern California since 2006 and has been on the front lines of several national and international news events. She’s worked for media outlets serving Southern California readers covering education, local government, entertainment and all things nerd including comic book culture and video games. She’s an amateur obstacle course racer, constant fact-checker, mother of three and lover of all things adorable.

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